Saturday, 13 October 2012

What I found there... (1)

You spend so much time in your house that you begin to stop noticing all the little details. One sunny Sunday morning whilst the house was asleep (apart from the cat and I) I went looking, and really seeing.First stop was my living room. It isn't a big room; and it doesn't have to lofty Victorian proportions of the front of the house. It is also a dark room as the kitchen extension at the back of the dining room and the trees surrounding the garden block out a lot of the light; it also faces east which doesn't help.It's a blue room... the carpet was 'a bargain' and could do with replacing; we used to have a rug but it didn't really fit when the new sofa arrived (I kind of miss the rug). The new sofa is our third sofa in just about a decade. The first sofa, well you know what they say, buy cheap, buy twice. It was blue and matched the room but it had cushions instead of a proper back and nothing would stay right. Sofa number two cost a bit; again it was blue; at the time the only sofa in the shop with a proper back. I didn't like it from the day we got it home. The arms were too big, the cushions were feather filled and needed constant plumping and the seat was too short. Sofa number three (affectionately known as the Sofa of Sloth) is chocolate brown (to hide cat hair) and has those cunning levers you pull to make the leg rests jump up. I love this sofa.We also have a lot of 'stuff'. Books and DVDs, pictures and pennants, and ornaments. Each cherished and treasured and with it's own story.

Handmade

One year, back at the start of the recession when money was tight I decided to make my own gifts. The modelling clay had been bought some time previously with ideas of making a Christmas Manger (never happened) so it go turned into various gifts! Black clay for black cats with a paw print stamp.

The sofa has far too many cushions, but this is my favourite

When the blue sofa turned to brown it obviously necessitated the purchase of new cushions (it's a girl thing). The Kitten Cushion was quite expensive but it broke up the shape sameness of the other cushions. It is promised as the last cushion (unless of course we get a different coloured sofa!).

This is the 'Elephant in the Room'

Not an original thought, but one that thoroughly amused us. The elephant in the room. It originated with a scene from the BBC Comedy 'Outnumbered':

The egg collection started with the pretend Faberge egg. I think that one of the small ones was a gift and the others were bought to keep it company. The one painted with lizards is from South Africa (my Mother and her travels). The globe is half of a pair, the other of which is upstairs.

The cat is not amused

As far as Casper is concerned Sunday morning is play time... not for all this photographing nonsense. Even if he does get to sit and look gorgeous. Nobody is throwing any balls, brushing him or even petting him!

All the way from South Africa

The wooden mask came back from South Africa with my Mother and Grandmother. You never ask a lady her age, but enough to say they both draw a pension! Things they did; go up table mountain, visit the Cape of Good Hope and rode ostriches (amongst other things!).

Tales of the Alhambra

Earlier this year my mother retraced a trip from forty or fifty years ago when as a slip of a girl her and some of her friends took a trip to Spain. These came from the Alhambra revisited. They are far too nice to put to their intended use as coasters!

Fat cat, King frog and friends

The coffee table
has never been used by a coffee table, it doesn't fit properly where a
coffee table needs to be and the Better-Half doesn't drink coffee.

Fat Cat and King Frog are supposed to be garden ornaments, but they never made it that far! The gem globe was a Christmas present; we saw one on late night shopping TV and wanted one and happily got given this gorgeous example as a Christmas present.

Also on the table is the white cat (one of many in the room), the change jar (big coinage for bus fares and stamps), the money-box for small coinage, my Gator helmet signed by Chris Leak, the dragons and the money toad.